NBN Co’s competence under question

In recent times NBN Co has appointed a new chairman, downgraded its construction targets for the second time in a year, and taken responsibility for the rollout in the Northern Territory in house after replacing its contractor there.
AFR

by
John McDuling

It was inevitable that the largest infrastructure project in the nation’s history would encounter difficulties.

Particularly when labour is scarce, due to a once-in-a-century resources boom.

Yet the series of revelations brought to light by The Australian Financial Review over the past month suggest deeper problems with the rollout of the national broadband network.

In recent times
NBN Co
has appointed a new chairman, downgraded its construction targets for the second time in a year, and taken responsibility for the rollout in the Northern Territory in house after replacing its contractor there.

Now, internal documents reveal that NBN Co was aware of delays in late February, that it has had serious concerns about each of its key contractors, and that fibre splicing – one of the most critical aspects of building a fibre network – is tracking far behind schedule.

For all the column inches spent on the tiresome debate about competing broadband technologies and internet industry politics, less scrutiny has been placed on what the NBN actually is: a gigantic construction project, facing construction challenges.

For taxpayers, the obvious concern is how these challenges will affect the overall cost of the $37.4 billion project.

But the rollout issues are raising questions of the NBN Co’s competence iand damaging its credibility.

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The only way the public has to measure the progress of the NBN is on its official rollout targets. This time a year ago, NBN Co still officially expected to pass 1.26 million premises with fibre by the end of June. It now expects to pass less than 20 per cent of that amount.